Tears and talent:
School pupils from around New Zealand have the chance to create and perform their own stage musicals in the new series Class Act, under the watchful eye of Jason Kerrison and a host of well-known Kiwi entertainers and actors. Melenie Parkes reports.
Emotional time as schools put on a class act.
Jason Kerrison admits that his latest TV series Class Act reduced him to tears. “I’m literally bawling and then I look around and one of the camera ops is right in my face. ‘Oh, bro, bad timing, man’,” laughs Kerrison. “Shame. I’m the bawler.” There’s no need for shame, however, because Class Act, the new observational reality series Kerrison hosts, is a genuine test of how much pressure your tear ducts can endure. Created by actor Cliff Curtis, Class Act follows young people from four schools around New Zealand as they perform a stage show they have written themselves. (Schools featured are Manurewa High School and Kelston Girls’ College from Auckland, Christchurch’s Shirley Boys’ High School, and Te Wharekura O Ng ti Rongomai from Rotorua.) Kerrison says that with this project Curtis wanted to foster, “that kaupapa (principle) of allowing New Zealand kids to tell stories of their own experiences in Aotearoa, in their own language”. “The cool thing about this concept is that it’s their stories.” Rather than rehashing perennial school productions like Grease (now well into middle-age) or even a musical for young people from this century – such as High School Musical – these kids get to chronicle their own lives, in their own voices. “I reckon that’s the real key thing I took away from it, was just how empowered they were after doing that,” says Kerrison. “We just happened to be there to capture the moments and kind of shuffle them along in certain ways.”
As a judge on New Zealand’s Got Talent and a musician himself, Kerrison has a keen eye and ear for creativity.
The scripts and music for the shows were all written by the students and Kerrison was blown away by their abilities.
In one episode, he enthuses that one of the songs sounds like it could be on a Disney movie soundtrack.
“The talent was just phenomenal and really humbling.”
Along with Kerrison, a team of coaches and choreographers were on hand to guide them. But the OpShop frontman says the hard work was all the kids’ doing.
“It was really just up to us to wrap whatever support we could around them so that they could tell their story the best way they could.”
That support included famous names such as singer Stan Walker and actors Keisha Castle Hughes, Rose McIver, Frankie Adams, Temuera Morrison and Jennifer Ward-Lealand. Kerrison says the celebrity mentors were similarly moved by what they saw.
“There was not one person who didn’t have sweaty eyes at some point, you know?” he laughs.
Kerrison says the teens took full advantage of having the ear of their celebrity mentors.
“Anything was asked and everything was answered. Nothing was off the table. And I thought it was nice to see people, obviously like Tem and gosh, everyone actually, just give of themselves.”
The students’ stories are by turns hilarious, emotional and sometimes shocking in the honest portrayals of their lives.
These young people are dealing with big issues including family separation, sexuality, school and work-life balance, and all the myriad challenges that come with being a teenager. Their vulnerable performances are sometimes difficult to watch but are, ultimately, inspiring.
Kerrison recalls what it was like to see the students’ family and friends in the audience and watching their reactions.
“The story is about what’s going on and what’s happening in their local community and the local community have turned up to watch it. So you know, you’ve got these kids having written a show, who are imitating life and life’s turned up to hear their version of it.
“And so there’s kind of some anticipation because you know that the people that are in the work that the kids have created are actually present and there and hearing the story, possibly for the first time.”
Being involved in Class Act has had a profound effect on Kerrison, who says he developed “really lovely relationships with those students”.
When asked if one production particularly resonated with him, he takes a long, thoughtful pause before saying, “The answer’s not a no. The answer’s more like, every performance on the night was the most poignant and perfect thing that it could ever have been.”
“It was really just up to us to wrap whatever support we could around them so that they could tell their story the best way they could.” – Jason Kerrison (above right)